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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29412846">When B Came For Tea</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Donsular/pseuds/Donsular'>Donsular</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Mary Poppins (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Blood and Violence, F/M, Family Feuds, Family Issues, Fluff, Gun Violence, Lies, Trauma, World War I</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 11:28:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,050</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29412846</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Donsular/pseuds/Donsular</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Aunt B is a tough woman with old ideas. So it’s needless to say that she doesn’t agree with Jane’s modern outlook on life. So when she finds out that Jane’s found a rather unusual man to give her affections to, she’s ready to prove that he hasn’t got what it takes. And if it comes to it, she’ll be more than happy to tear them apart.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jane Banks/Jack</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Baroness</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Today was not a good day for Jane Banks. She just had to show up at her brother’s house the day that Aunt Brenda decided to come over. She was meant to be coming next week, but of course, Auntie B loved to be early to things, even if it was completely inconvenient for everyone else. She was so rich, she seemed to just assume that everyone else in the family was too, enough that they didn’t have to work a day in their life. Of course, that idea was very wrong indeed. But it did mean that when Jane decided to visit her brother on her afternoon off, she was met with the rather forthright and dicty woman that she had really been doing her best to avoid since her teen years.</p>
<p>You see, Aunt B was a very old-fashioned woman, and despite her title, she was actually their great aunt, being about 83. She was Grandma Bank’s sister, who’d married rich. Very rich. So of course, she only went around in the grandest dresses and hats that money could buy, and expected anyone that wanted to know her to do the same. Her husband had been a Baron and a war veteran, having inherited a large estate in Kent. So, when he died childless nearly 20 years ago, everything went to B, and suddenly, she was the most important person in the family. Which wasn’t very good for Jane. Being a baroness made her think that she should have control over all the women in the family, and being from the very middle of Victoria’s reign, her ideas of what the perfect lady should be, hardly fit the Banks mould. She never got along well with Winifred, thinking it was very unbecoming for a lady to go tearing off through the city, inciting riots, and trying to topple the patriarchy. So, when Jane grew up to do a similar thing, she wasn’t so popular either. But at least her mother had long hair and a dress. Jane didn’t even have that going for her. When B saw her new style, she had almost fainted. But once she overcame that, she had gone bright red and scolded her. She seemed convinced she wanted to be a man, and that it was unnatural to look like that. And of course, when she prioritised work over love, and her last relationship fell apart, B had been quick to try and mock her with the idea that she wasn’t a real woman and believed she wanted a wife, too to become more like a man. Jane had been so tempted to say she did, just to spite her, but in the end, decided it was probably best to just avoid her completely.</p>
<p>So, for the last several years, they hadn’t spoken a word. Jane was the only one in the family that never wrote to her, and whenever she visited, she stayed as far away as possible. She’d even gotten Michael to stop telling her about what she’d been up too, having gotten sick of her finding out some news and harassing her with letters demanding an explanation for her behaviour. Yes, it was safe to say that they had a very volatile relationship, which is why it had been such an issue to see her again.</p>
<p>“Still no husband, I see.” Was the first thing she said upon noticing her existence, before scowling and turning away once more to continue talking with Michael. Her brother shot her an apologetic look, which thankfully, as she was too busy rambling on about how hideous the house looked (she never did like the décor of anything other than her manor and estate), B didn’t notice.</p>
<p>However, Jane couldn’t help but notice that the house seemed awfully quiet, and soon spotted Ellen peeking out into the hall from her hiding place in the kitchen. Being the housekeeper, B would likely not even attempt to converse with her. However, she had a habit of finding fault in Ellen’s work, whether she wasn’t doing something right, was too loud, or too noticeable. B always seemed to forget that most houses didn’t have secret corridors for staff to work and move around without being seen. But as Ellen got older and more clumsy, B was even more picky with her, finding it frustrating that she was older than Ellen and could do a better job (nonsense, B had never had to do the housework in her life), and demanding that Michael replace her. So, by now, Ellen knew during any visit such as this, it was best to just keep out of the way.</p>
<p>And the same, unfortunately, applied to the children. B firmly believed that children should be seen and never heard, which is why they’d probably hidden away upstairs, or gone outside to get as far away as they could. In B’s small mind, they were merely there to look sweet and rosy until they could contribute to the family. So, when the children wanted to tell their stories, she was always quick to shut them down. She was probably one of the main reasons that the children had felt the need to mature so quickly after their mother died, as B took it upon herself to insert herself into the matriarchal role for the first few months. And in that time, had pressured John to breaking point to improve his grades until he was the top of the class, and tried to get Annabel to become a more passive woman than Jane or Winifred had been. Which had mostly involved isolating her from anything she really wanted to do. She never really interacted with Georgie, though. He was too young to be of any worth to her.</p>
<p>Even Michael wasn’t safe. When he first got with Kate, the pair had been subject to a lot of criticism, and B had been especially keen for Michael to forget about his art, even despite their father’s approval of it. She only ever wanted to hear about the bank, and why on earth he wasn’t working full-time yet, or why he wasn’t promoted, or why he wasn’t earning much. In general, she only ever wanted to know why he was a failure, and to tell him how to fix it, despite the fact she had never worked a single day in her life, and really had no clue what she was talking about.</p>
<p>It was all such a mess that they all did their absolute best to avoid. But, unfortunately, Aunt B had always been adamant on visiting everyone in the family at least once a year. And unfortunately, despite saying that it would be next week when she phoned, today was the day.</p>
<p>“Well then, are going to come in and sit with us, or are you just going to stand in the doorway like that? For goodness sake, girl, have some decency.” Jane did as she was told, too frazzled from work to get into an argument. She’d really been looking forward to having a break, but it looked like she’d be saying goodbye to that idea.</p>
<p>As soon as she sat down (across from her, of course, B didn’t like people getting too close to her, for fear of ruining her outfit), B shot her a look with her steely blue eyes, as if she was waiting for her to say something. But when Jane stayed quiet, she chose to speak instead.</p>
<p>“You’re getting too old to be galivanting around this city like you are. Why can’t you settle down and get married. You can’t look after children if you’re always starting riots.” Quite rich from someone who also doesn’t have children. “I think you’ve had enough of that for one lifetime, don’t you?” Jane pondered what to say to it. She didn’t even like pretending she would give up her career, but she also really couldn’t be bothered listening to her rants today.</p>
<p>“Well, I do actually have someone at the moment.” Her eyes bulged wide.</p>
<p>“Who?!”</p>
<p>“A man called Jack.” B eyed her suspiciously,</p>
<p>“What does he do?” Jane tried not to cringe. She really should have expected that question. She should have had in mind a fake career. But she was so tired and caught off guard by the question, that she didn’t even think to lie.</p>
<p>“He’s a lamplighter.” B gasped and let out a melodramatic cry that would make anyone think that she had just been told her that she’d lost ownership of her estate.</p>
<p>“Oh, why are you always like this, Janet?!” Why did she think her name was Janet? Jane wasn’t meant to be short for anything.</p>
<p>“We’ve known each other for years, and got back in touch thanks to a mutual friend. He’s a great guy, there’s really nothing to worry about.”</p>
<p>“RUBBISH! Men of that class are all scoundrels. There are only two things that man wants from you, girl. One of them is your money, and the other is to have his wicked way with you.”</p>
<p>“Now <em>that’s</em> rubbish!”</p>
<p>“You haven’t even met him yet.” Michael’s argument caught them both off guard, as he’d been so quiet up until then.</p>
<p>“Fine! Bring him over for dinner. You’ll only prove my point.”</p>
<p>“Fine!” Jane stood up, completely furious, and stormed out of the house. She’d already had enough. And as she saw B’s overnight bag by the door, she was half tempted to punch a wall. But she was already outside, having slammed the door behind her, before she had the chance.</p>
<p>Running her hands through her hair, Jane marched down the road, desperately trying to calm herself down. She absolutely despised the woman, and now she was trying to attack Jack aswell. And yet, now, she only wanted to blame herself for even telling B about him. Now she was going to have to drag him into her firing line, or take even more mocking from her if he didn’t come. Part of her wanted to just go home and not go back, but B would probably show up at her flat since she seemed so desperate to prove her point.</p>
<p>Jane had made it to Owen Street by the time she ran into Jack. He’d just been pedalling by, but she managed to catch his eye, causing him to head over to her looking more than a little concerned.</p>
<p>“Jane, you alright?”</p>
<p>“I’m fine. Its just my Aunt B came over and I’m losing the will to live because of her.” Jack smirked.</p>
<p>“Come on, she can’t be that bad.”</p>
<p>“Trust me, she is.” Jane paused, “And I may or may not have told her about you.”</p>
<p>“What did she say?” He asked, still doubtful that B could really be as bad as she said.</p>
<p>“She wants you to come over for dinner to prove you’re not good enough for me.” Jack was caught off guard by this, but quickly regained his composure.</p>
<p>“I’ve had people say worse than that, don’t worry. I’m happy to come over, even if it’s just to get her to shut up.”</p>
<p>“I’m not so sure about that, Jack. She’s really rude about a lot of things. And she already knows you’re a lamplighter, which she didn’t take well.”</p>
<p>“It’ll be fine.” He assured, “I can just tell her I’m the captain of the lighting brigade. That basically puts me as being as good as some senior policeman. And I’ll wear my fanciest suit to prove it. I can come up with enough stories to stump her, stories are what I’m best at.”</p>
<p>“You think so?” Jane laughed, “She’s got very high standards.”</p>
<p>“Well, if she really hates everything, then I’ll at least get her to tolerate me.” Jane burst out laughing at that, well and truly feeling better.</p>
<p>“Well, it’ll be nice to watch someone try it, because I don’t think she can even tolerate me.” Playfully wrapping an arm around her, Jack beamed. He certainly liked the challenge. Most rich people didn’t like people like him, but they would never even give him the time of day to prove himself. He’d always wanted to show a rich snob that being poor didn’t make him any less of a man, and he was actually glad for the chance to do it.</p>
<p>“Well, I’m more than happy to give it a go. And I’ll big you up too. If we’re doing this, we’re gonna wipe the floor with her.” Jane smiled warmly, already imagining B’s face when she’d have to come face-to-face with Jack. He had a mischievous look in his eyes, and she could already tell that he had plenty of ideas for the night. Maybe she would enjoy herself after all.</p>
<p>“Ok, let’s do it.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. A Lady’s Hand</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Jane Banks wasn’t usually in the habit of challenging her own family, but here she was. Maybe it was because she was already so tired from work. Maybe it was because it was Jack that she’d insulted. Whatever the case, it led to her sitting in the lounge of her brother’s house waiting on Jack. She would’ve preferred if she could have come to Michael’s with him, but unfortunately, Jack had work, and it was a lot easier if she just waited for him at the house, and he came over when he finished his rounds and changed. Because he had committed to the suit idea. Jane honestly couldn’t wait. Not only would she be able to shut down B, but she’d also get to see Jack wearing a nice suit, and she definitely liked that idea.</p>
<p>B came downstairs after getting ready for the last hour, and Jane could tell that she had put even more time and effort into her appearance to intimidate Jack. Her white wispy locks were in the most precise and complicated updo she’d ever seen. She wore purple satin and enormous furs, matched with impossibly high heels, and a most ostentatious hat. She was usually overdressed for these sorts of things, but this time, she had really turned it up to eleven.</p>
<p>“Well then,” she drawled, “Where is he?”</p>
<p>“I already told you, he’ll be here when he’s finished work.” B huffed, clearly not impressed with her attitude.</p>
<p>“Well, he really ought to hurry up, it’s very rude to keep a lady waiting. Even you.” Jane didn’t bother arguing, knowing it was futile. She was so glad Jack would be there, he had more than enough wit to compete with someone like Aunt B.</p>
<p>For the following ten minutes, Jane tried her best to distract herself with anything she could. She did up Michael’s tie for him (since B decided that his attempts had been failures), helped prepare the food with Ellen, and once that was done, settled into an armchair and chatted with the children. John and Annabel weren’t too talkative, clearly still a little apprehensive to do so with B in earshot. But Georgie wasn’t so bothered, since it was Jane that started the conversation. And soon enough, as Georgie chattered on about the duck he found on the schoolyard, with no input from B, the twins finally plucked up the courage to join in too. So, by 5:45, when there came a knock on the door, everyone was in a rather pleasant mood to start the evening.</p>
<p>Jane beamed as she answered the door, probably surprising the leerie she was faced with, who was certainly expecting her to be in a mood more akin to her anger earlier that day. But when Jack saw her gorgeous smile, he couldn’t help but smile back and give her a kiss.</p>
<p>As soon as they heard his voice, the children all bounded to the door to greet Jack, always excited to see him, but they were unfortunately beaten by B, who was clearly keen to get a good look at the man Jane loved. And having hyped himself up for over an hour (though he’d never admit that), Jack found himself being the one to start the conversation, despite her being even more threatening than he’d imagined.</p>
<p>“So, you must be Jane’s Aunt B.”</p>
<p>“That’s Lady Brenda to you, young man.” Jack gave a lighthearted smile.</p>
<p>“Oh, of course. My apologies, madam. I was just about to ask what to call you. It certainly seemed a bit strange to call you Aunt.” Jack’s joke didn’t seem to soften B’s expression, her hard steel eyes still boring holes through his very soul. She seemed to appreciate the suit. It was a little too casual for her tastes, but still nice. And even she seemed to be aware that she preferred much more formal clothes than the average man would ever wear, so she didn’t bother to mention it.</p>
<p>“I’m Jack Hackney. Jane’s told me a lot about you. From what I hear you’re certainly a woman of high esteem. I hope you find me suitable for Jane.” Somewhat impressed, B offered a hand for him to shake, which he took firmly.</p>
<p>“Well, you’re certainly an interesting choice.” It was at this point B decided she’d like to sit down to continue their conversation. So, while Michael led the way through to the dining room, Jane took the chance to speak with Jack.</p>
<p>“Since when did you know how to talk like that?” She giggled.</p>
<p>“I mentioned about tonight to Oz, and it turned out he still had his grandma’s old Victorian book on etiquette. I figured B would still be a little old fashioned, so I read through that.”</p>
<p>“Well, it seemed to work. She doesn’t usually like to shake hands with anyone she doesn’t know.”</p>
<p>“Well, its an important rule for men not to take a Lady’s hand first.” He said with a devilish grin.</p>
<p>Oh yeah. This was gonna be good.</p>
<p>Once everyone was seated, Ellen quietly brought out dinner, setting each plate down and silently praying that B wouldn’t complain about anything. But thankfully, she was much too distracted by Jack to care about Ellen’s perceived shortcomings. As she looked at the well-dressed man before her, she couldn’t believe that he was in fact a measly lamplighter. She wondered if Jane had lied to deliberately infuriate her, though she couldn’t imagine why any woman with as much potential as she had, would intentionally try to disappoint her family.</p>
<p>“So, Jack, what is it that you do? Jane told me that you’re a lamplighter, though you certainly don’t look like one.”</p>
<p>“Well technically, I am a lamplighter. But I’m the captain of my brigade.” He replied with a proud smile. Jane looked over to her aunt, watching as her smugness seemed to take a little hit, and trying not to giggle.</p>
<p>“What do you mean by that?”</p>
<p>“I’m in charge of a group of people, its basically like being the chief superintendent at a police station. What about yourself?”</p>
<p>B scoffed at the mere insinuation that she should work. But for a moment, Jane could’ve sworn she saw a touch of doubt in her eye, as the idea that women weren’t as good as men nearly undermined her. But she eventually settled on an excuse.</p>
<p>“A lady doesn’t get in the way of a man’s work, Mr Hackney.”</p>
<p>“I know that.” He said with a mischievous grin, “I meant your husband. What does he do?”</p>
<p>“He was a baron.” She beamed, “But he used to be a soldier in the Anglo-Zulu war. He’d have been about your age at the time.”</p>
<p>Jack perked up at this.</p>
<p>“Really?” One thing Jane had been surprised to know about Jack when they first met, was that he was extremely well read, specifically being a big fan of history. So of course he would know about Britain’s many wars. And while Jane knew little about it and had always simply accepted B’s boast about her veteran husband, she could quite clearly see from the playful look in his eye, that Jack knew there was more to it. And it seemed that B noticed his expression, as well, as her proud smile quickly turned to a hideous scowl as she spoke.</p>
<p>“Yes, he joined the army right at the start of the war and fought hard. Unfortunately, he was shot in Eshowe in late February and had to come home.”</p>
<p>“But didn’t the war only start in January that year? The whole war was just a couple of months long.” At that, everyone at the table looked up from their plates.</p>
<p>“What’s your point?”</p>
<p>“Well, if he joined the army at the start of the war, he probably spent at least a month on the ship to south Africa. So, he could have only gotten there in mid-February at the earliest. Not to mention there was practically no fighting that month, save for a few tiny skirmishes. How long did he fight?”</p>
<p>“He was officially stationed for two and a half weeks.” Everyone at the table stifled a giggle, surprised to know how little experience he actually had. B had always acted like her husband had spent years in bloody combat and come home a hero. Had they known he never saw a full battle, nobody would have taken it too seriously. Jane almost wanted to ask how he didn’t end up going back to fight after his recovery, but figured he probably used it as an excuse to stay home. And if she were to insinuate that, she’d probably start a massive fight. B didn’t like her family being called cowards. But it seemed that Jack was feeling much more confident than the Banks, and B clearly wasn’t sure how to handle it.</p>
<p>“Well, he has more experience than you do. Or are you going to try say you fought in the Great War, hm?”</p>
<p>“Well, yes. I did, actually. I spent the whole four years at the Somme.”</p>
<p>“Wait, the Somme?” Michael asked, clearly having the same thought as the rest of the table.</p>
<p>“Yep. I got shot five times on <em>that</em> day. But once I recovered, I went back to the trenches.” B didn’t believe him.</p>
<p>“Surely you would have been too young. You don’t look old enough to have fought from the start.”</p>
<p>“You’d be surprised how many kids made up the army. I was only 15, myself. It was only once we got out there that we realised the only reason we’d been allowed to join was to get more numbers. They essentially just wanted to use us as machine gun fodder.” He said with a chuckle. Jane smiled. She’d heard that story before, even if it had taken some convincing. He always felt awkward talking about it, because he didn’t like to boast, especially knowing how many people died that, in his mind, deserved to have survived more than him. So, it was nice to see him talking about what he did with a semblance of pride. And it certainly shut down B, who paused to grumble to herself. She never liked to be outdone. And Jack only had to lie about one thing to make her shut up. Maybe she’d have to try it in future.</p>
<p>“Well, it seems that I may have misjudged you Mr Hackney. Maybe you’re not so bad.”</p>
<p>“Why, thank you, Lady Brenda.” B gave him a condescending sneer, before she was struck with an idea. Her sneer turned into a devilish smirk, as she innocently brought her elbows to rest on the table, reaching her arms up to lean her head on the back of her interlocked hands. And as she leant forward slightly, she asked,</p>
<p>“Now, tell me, what was it like getting shot?” Jack froze. The whole table did, looking up at her for any sort of answer in her expression as to why she’d be asking that.</p>
<p>“Was it a burning pain or a stabbing pain? Or was it just a sort of pop as it ripped open the skin?”</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>She spoke slowly, putting emphasis on each grotesque word, all the while watching Jack squirm in his seat with a predacious stare.</p>
<p>“You know, I heard that sometimes they leave the bullet in because its too risky to remove. Imagine that. They probably left one or two in you. I bet all it would take is a twist the wrong way or a small knock to have it rip through your arteries. That would be terrifying. And I imagine it’d probably kill you before anyone could help.”</p>
<p>“B, stop it.” By now, Jack could no longer bear to make eye contact. His gaze remained fixed down at the tablecloth in total silence, as his hands curled into fists in his lap, his nails digging into his knuckles so hard, Jane was certain he was going to draw blood. She could see as the rise and fall of his chest became choppy and stuttered, as he did everything he could to stop himself from hyperventilating. Carefully, she reached for his hand, but he flinched away, squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to calm the noise in his head and regain his composure. But of course, with B still enjoying herself and ignoring Jane’s warning, that didn’t work.</p>
<p>“And what about on the battlefield? I bet that would have been bad. All those screams as young men and boys were gunned down. Their families must have been so upset. I wonder how long they mourned for. They probably never got over the loss of their little angels. And yet somehow <em>you</em> survived. Not sure why it would be you specifically, when there were so many others that deserved life.” Her sinister laugh made everyone uncomfortable, but as Michael also attempted to get her to stop talking, she simply ignored him and carried on, even louder and harsher than before.</p>
<p>“But, then again, I suppose it all comes down to luck, doesn’t it? Skill can’t do much to save you if you step on a mine and explode with a mighty-”</p>
<p>BANG!</p>
<p>As soon as she beat her fist against the table, Jack leapt from his seat as if he’d been lit on fire. He only stood for a moment, looking totally confused and lost, before he bolted out of the dining room, the sound of the front door opening and closing to signal his exit.</p>
<p>The whole table was in shock, not one of them even thinking about doing much else other than looking to B with a horrified expression. But when they wanted answers, all they got was a snigger,</p>
<p>“As I thought. He may not have served as long, but at least when he came back, my husband was still functional.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. The Gift</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Why does nobody talk about WW1 when there’s so much to say?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In those moments, nothing else mattered. Jane had seen this before. Not just in Jack, but from plenty of her friends. Nearly everyone she knew who had been to the war or had family that did, all said the same thing. It changes you. Simple memories trigger pure panic. It feels like you might suddenly be sent back at any time. They called it “Shell Shock”. But in Jane’s opinion, “shock” didn’t even begin to cover it.</p><p>By the time Jane had made it outside, Jack was standing by the lamppost at the front of the house.  He was resting his head against his arms which leant against the pole. His head was down with his eyes screwed shut as he desperately tried to keep back the wave of emotion threatening to pull him under. His body remained tense, as it bathed in the glow from the lamp above, but it looked more like he was terrified of getting too far from the safety of the light, as he pressed his hole body as close as he could. She could see that he was shaking, as well, but it was too much to just be shivers from the cold. He was clearly in a bad way, and so Jane was rather cautious about approaching him.</p><p>She tried to be quiet, so as not to startle him further, but loud enough that he could still hear her coming and not be snuck up on. Closing the door behind her, Jane walked the short distance to the lamp post, where she was able to better see him under the lamp light.</p><p>“Hey.” She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t have much personal experience with shell shock and wasn’t sure how she could make this any better. Jack didn’t look up, but he didn’t flinch at her presence. It was only when she laid her hand on his back, did she feel the muscles tense under her touch. However, he didn’t oppose to having her rubbing soothing circles up and down his back as he caught his breath.</p><p>“How are you doing?” She asked, after a moment of silence. She wasn’t sure if she’d be able to actually get an answer out of him, as at that moment, he looked too panicked to be able to speak. But after a few moments, he did,</p><p>“Not bad.” She was certainly unsure about that. If this classed as ‘not bad’ than she dreaded to think what classed as ‘bad’. But at least he was talking, which was more than she was expecting.</p><p>“Sorry,” he stammered, “I wasn’t really prepared for that.”</p><p>“Don’t worry about all that. It doesn’t matter. Right now, all that matters is that you’re alright.” Jack finally turned to look at her, seeming completely unsure of himself. His eyes were clearly wet, and he didn’t have the courage to meet hers for long before his gaze was fixed to the floor once more in shame. But Jane was quick to wrap her arms around him, feeling him deflate into probably one of the most needed hugs of his life.</p><p>Jane wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that, but it certainly felt like a while. The night was cold, and the hug was keeping them both warm. But by the time they finally did part (though they still held on to one another with hands around their waists), Jack had mostly been able to recover himself, offering a small smile to her.</p><p>“You weren’t half kidding when you said she was a lot to handle.”</p><p>“Well, even I didn’t think she’d go that far. Considering how much she seems to respect the military, I wasn’t expecting that.”</p><p>“There you go then,” he forced a laugh, “if you still want to get one up on her, call her out for that.”</p><p>She hadn’t really considered it before. Ever since she was born, Jane had always been told to respect her elders, regardless of how she felt about their behaviour. Now that she thought about it, it seemed silly. That sort of rule should really only be followed by a child. But as an adult that knew very well how to behave and understand morals, she should have really said something sooner. But still, part of her was still afraid to. It didn’t seem at all like something she should be doing. But then again, few people had probably ever done something like that. Most people had enough decency to be polite even with someone they didn’t agree with. She said it herself, all that mattered was that Jack was alright. B’s opinions about him didn’t matter at all. None of her opinions did when she acted like that. Surely, even she would be able to understand that.</p><p>Still thinking, she rubbed her hands up and down Jack’s side, and was surprised to feel him flinch quite strongly at the tough, causing her to give him a questioning look.</p><p>“Sorry,” he said, “I guess I’m still a little jittery. It’s just that… that’s where some of the bullets went in. Sometimes I swear I can still feel ‘em.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realise.” She paused for a moment. She really wanted to ask something but wasn’t sure if she should. He’d certainly calmed down a lot more, but even so…</p><p>“Jack, what happened that day?” Jack froze, and Jane instantly regretted her question. But before she could assure him that he didn’t have to answer if he didn’t want to, he’d regained his composure again,</p><p>“I guess it’s been long enough now that waiting any more isn’t going to make the story any easier to tell.” Jane gave his hands a comforting squeeze as they perched together on the garden wall.</p><p>“Well, they sent us out in the morning. You see, all us volunteers that signed up at the start of the war had to be trained, so by the time we got to the trenches it was late 1915, early 1916, that sort of time. So, when it came to the Somme, it was our first proper battle. Nobody was ready for it. I was one of the first out. They had a habit of sending up the young ones first, since we were easier to order about. So, we had nothing to hide behind. And that’s when I was first hit. Twice: one in the shoulder and another in the thigh not long after; from the machine guns.” He paused briefly, reaching up to rub his shoulder.</p><p>“I think that was the moment we realised we were done for.  They’d had a weeklong artillery battle beforehand to destroy some of the big guns for us. But they barely destroyed any. Most men just got shot back into the trenches. They didn’t even make it out into the field.” At this point, he stopped again, closing his eyes for a moment as visions of the bodies piling up in the trenches behind him, filled his mind. “Some men even got injured from their friends’ corpses landing on them. It was a mess. But by some miracle, I made it out into no man’s land. The adrenaline just took over. I didn’t even realise I’d been shot by that point. I was just going forward, shooting at the Germans, and trying not to step on any mines or get caught in the barbed wire. Still,” he forced a laugh that sounded the furthest thing from amused, “it wasn’t as bad as when they started gassing us as well later on in the war.”</p><p>“Anyway, my luck eventually ran out and I got shot three times: once in the hip, and two a little way below my ribs.” He said, gesturing to the far-left side of his body. “I couldn’t stay up any longer, so I crawled into a crater and hid. I wasn’t really sure at that point if I was just waiting for the battle to end or waiting to die.”</p><p>At this point, Jack paused in his story, as he realised what came next. He turned to Jane, poorly hiding the look of fear on his face. Jane couldn’t for the life of her figure out what would make him stop now after everything he’d already said, but she could see him toiling to figure out how to word it.</p><p>“Did you know your Father was in the same section as me?”</p><p>Now it was Jane’s turn to be shocked. Her father died at the Somme. But she had no idea he would have been so close to Jack.</p><p>“No,” she gasped, “I didn’t know that.”</p><p>“Well… he was the one that found me. He did his best to stop the bleeding, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. So, he suggested going back to the trench. But when he stood up, someone spotted him and put a bullet through his lungs.” Looking at Jane’s horrified expression, he decided to leave out the gruesome details, and how George’s body had fallen on him, covering him in the man’s blood. “I had to hide under his body when the man that shot him came by to check if he was dead. He didn’t see me underneath so thankfully he moved on. Not sure how long I stayed there in the end. But it was certainly a while. And when things calmed down a bit, I managed to crawl back to the trench and got help.” His gaze fell back to his lap, his arms tightening further around himself.</p><p>“There was only one other guy in my section that survived. The other ten all died. But he wasn’t injured. So, whereas I got to go to hospital, he had to carry on with the battle the next day. It was only a few days later that they found out that he was only surviving because he would hide in the trench during the fight. So, they shot him too, for cowardice. He was only 14. Then, I was the only one left. Luckily, the bullets didn’t hit anything too important, so they healed reasonably well. And after that, they put me in a new section and sent me out again after about two months. I certainly didn’t want to, but it was either that, or get shot for cowardice. Thankfully, the section was full of newly trained volunteers who’d never seen a battle, so they would listen to me when I told them to go first. I dread to think how many men I got killed because of that.”</p><p>Jane was in shock. She didn’t even realise he had finished his story until he let out a shuddering sigh, rubbed his eyes and looked back up to her, searching for any sign in her expression as to what she thought about him. She wasn’t really sure what to say. She knew he’d been through a lot in the war, but she certainly hadn’t expected it to be that. Even when they published horror stories about the war in newspapers, they had always seemed so tame. The soldiers had always seemed to know exactly what they were doing, smiling and joking in every free moment to keep up morale. Had the world been told the true details, maybe then everyone would’ve stopped glorifying it so much. No wonder Jack had been so desperate to save his skin.</p><p>“You did what you had to do, Jack. I know its easier said than done, but you can’t let that get you down. If those other men had seen the things you saw, they’d be hiding with you too. You’re only human Jack. I’m sure that every soldier that fought that battle, on both sides, did the exact same thing. And it wouldn’t change anything about the war if you went first or last. The first people are always the most at risk no matter what. You wouldn’t have made a difference to that. It was going to be either you or them. You just used your experience to your advantage.” She reached out and took his hand, feeling herself getting emotional, too.</p><p>“None of the men out there deserved to die. They all deserved life just the same as you did. But I wouldn’t trade you for my Father because it wouldn’t make a difference in the grand scheme of things. It would still hurt just as many people. And even if my Father survived that day, who’s to say he wouldn’t be killed later on? You survived for a reason. Someone looking down on you gave you a chance, and you deserve to take advantage of that opportunity. I know it was tough, but we can be glad, now, that you made it back out.”</p><p>“Sometimes I <em>wish</em> I didn’t. Dying is easy. But living with this is so, so much harder.”</p><p>“Which is why you should be proud of it. You don’t deserve having anyone kick you down for it, even if its some rich baroness that thinks she’s second only to God. You certainly deserve more respect than her, and even more than what she gave you.” Jack smiled, shifting closer to her so the pair could lean against each other, their arms wrapped around the other.</p><p>“You know what, I think I know why I was allowed to live.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“Because I still needed to meet you.” Jane’s heart warmed at the sentiment, and without even thinking about it, she leant over and kissed him softly, her hand that wasn’t around his waist coming up to cradle his face.</p><p>She didn’t care what anyone else thought, anymore. She wasn’t worried about what he’d done or what he’d seen. She knew well and truly that he had a good heart, and that nothing could change that. Even when he doubted himself, she knew he still deserved all the love in the world, and she would never deny that from him. She’d spent enough time mourning her Father, but to know that he died so that Jack could live, didn’t upset her, it made her happier. For she knew that her Father had allowed her to be the happiest she ever could. And she was absolutely going to pay that forward to Jack, the gift himself. He truly was a gift. And she wasn’t going to stand by and let anyone berate him. B wouldn’t get away with this, but she didn’t matter right now. Because right now, she had Jack, and he was much more deserving of her attention. She could rant at her Aunt later.</p><p>Even when they parted, Jack and Jane only left inches between them, their warm breaths still mingling in the night air.</p><p>“we should probably head back inside,” Jack chuckled, “They’ll be wondering where we’ve gotten to.”</p><p>“Later. Let them wonder. Right now, we’ve got better things to do.” And with a smile, she kissed him again.</p><p>Yes, this was so much better.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Changing Tune</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Michael Banks did not know to say.</p>
<p>He had known his Aunt B all his life. And in all that time, she had never changed. She always disliked bad manners. She always thought she knew best. And she always hated anything that wasn’t to her standard. But in all the time he’d spent in her company over the years of his life, Michael had never known his Aunt B to do anything like <em>that</em>.</p>
<p>Michael spent several long moments simply sitting in his chair after Jack and Jane left, with no idea how to respond. He half wished the children would perk up and speak. But in the presence of their aunt, and now seeing how irritable she was, you couldn’t have even bribed them to say a single word out loud. He spent a little while just listening, in the hopes that he might hear his sister and Jack talking, but he quickly realised that that wouldn’t be possible. And fearing her reaction if he simply got up and left, Michael decided that he would try to talk to B instead.</p>
<p>“Why did you do that?”</p>
<p>“What?” she responded coolly.</p>
<p>“Why did you say all that to Jack?”</p>
<p>“I was merely asking questions. Curiosity is hardly a crime.”</p>
<p>Michael sighed, tracing the rim of his glass,</p>
<p>“What I meant is, why did you have to ask like that? You were being really uncomfortably specific about it just to freak him out.”</p>
<p>“Like I said, curious.” B picked up her drink and took a sip, continuing on with her meal, and the rest of the house did the same, Michael consigning himself to the idea that he would talk to her properly once the kids were out of the room and Jane and Jack had come back in. However, they didn’t come back. They didn’t come back for quite a while, in fact. Long enough that the rest of them had time to finish the meal before their return. So once the children had scarpered upstairs to escape the unbearable atmosphere, Michael took the opportunity to take a peek out of the window to see how they were doing.</p>
<p>He couldn’t help but smile fondly at the pair. They were sat as close as they could get on the garden wall, talking about something he couldn’t hear. They were laughing by now as Jack looked and pointed out something in the distance, and it seemed that things had calmed down again. Michael was quite sure that they’d be back in soon, so he tried again to talk to B while he still had the chance.</p>
<p>He initially planned to go back to the dining table, where B had been sitting last, but upon turning around, he was startled to find B sat in the armchair facing him with a look of distaste.</p>
<p>“Why on earth are you watching them? That is abhorrently rude.”  She huffed.</p>
<p>“Says the one who sent them out there in the first place.”</p>
<p>“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Michael pinched the bridge of his nose. How could someone who seems so conscious of how polite people are, not see that she was worse than anyone she ever admonished?</p>
<p>“You can’t just drag up old memories like that. There’s a lot of stuff he’ll wish he’d never saw, and stuff that he certainly doesn’t want to remember. So why would you bring it up like that? I thought you respected the military.”</p>
<p>“I do!” she asserted with a hand over her chest. “How dare you insinuate that I would ever do such a thing.”</p>
<p>“Why are you even denying it? You literally started banging on the table to scare him and said that there were bullets in his body that could kill him at any moment. Its pretty obvious what you were doing.” B stuttered to find a response, but despite coming up with several ideas, she quickly realised none of them would be helpful, and she wound up merely sitting in her chair and looking to the floor.</p>
<p>“Exactly. I don’t get it, though. Why did you do that? What’s your problem with him?”</p>
<p>“I don’t have a problem with him.”</p>
<p>“Well, clearly you do.”</p>
<p>“No, I don’t. He’s not the problem. It’s Jane.” Michael sighed. Well, she wasn’t lying about that, at least. But as he sighed, tipping his head back briefly in a moment of prayer that he would have the strength for this conversation, he was quickly distracted by the sniffle from across the room. His eyes darted back to B who was looking away, masking herself with a look of anger. But Michael was astonished to see tears forming in her eyes. In all the years he’d known her, Michael had never seen the stone-faced woman ever show a more genuine emotion than anger. She was never afraid, never happy, and certainly never upset. He almost felt bad for her, but even now, after everything she put the family through, he was struggling to pity her.</p>
<p>“Alright,” he said comfortingly as sat on the couch across from her, “What’s your problem with her, then?” B sighed, taking a moment to choose her words carefully.</p>
<p>“I was born in the 50s. Back then, a woman knew her place. And that was at a man’s side. Nowadays, women’s place is a little more up in the air. Your mother had so much to do to prove herself as a strong lady, and now Jane’s doing that too. And all I ever did was marry a man I barely loved and lived off of his back.” Michael’s eyes widened, his mouth falling open for a moment before he remembered to speak.</p>
<p>“So… you’re jealous?” She cringed at the word.</p>
<p>“Well, yes. I suppose I am.” She paused for a moment, tucking a loose hair back into place. “Girls these days work so much harder than I ever did, they have so much more choice. And then Jane comes along and- well, she’s got a job she loves where she can really make a difference, she’s completely independent, has a veteran husband from a totally different class, and they’re really in love.” She sighed, looking down at her hands.</p>
<p>“You know, I never wanted to marry Gerald. I had met a man quite similar to Jack, actually. David Finch was his name. We’d known each other for years, you see. We grew up together. But as my father’s business took off, we moved up in the world, and I was expected to marry someone of my own class or above. But at that point, David was working at a shipyard, so he wasn’t even an option. Gerald took an interest, however, and so I married him. But when you’re at the top of society, there’s so many rules to follow. Its suffocating. But then there’s Jane. She has the comfortable living, less rules, the man she wants. And its all the things I was so desperate for but could never have, just because I was 50 years too early. I don’t know why I do the things I do. But if there is a reason. It’s probably that.”</p>
<p>Michael warmed a little. Ok, that made sense. But he’d never have guessed she would actually admit anything like it. Michael had always assumed that she was so stuck in her old ways that she wanted everyone else to stay the same, as if society would stop changing just for her. But he never considered that she’d be jealous. Looking at her shame, she probably couldn’t bear to hear about everything Jane did because she wanted to do the same things when she was her age. Father had always said the Banks women were tough. But he’d also said they’d be better off if they born as men. Michael had never understood that, but now it certainly made sense. They had the drive to change the world, but too many restrictions to do it. Just the fact that Jane wore pants and cut her hair short had appalled some of the older generation, so he couldn’t imagine how suffocating it would have been for her.</p>
<p>“If you want to do the things she does, then why are you trying to stop her? You should be proud of her and support her. Then she might actually let you into her life. You can join her and do some of the things she does. Hell, you could join SPRUCE.”  She laughed at that.</p>
<p>“Goodness, no. I’m much too old for that.”</p>
<p>“I doubt it. Look at you. You may be old but that doesn’t stop you from doing what you need to do. And you’ve been living alone ever since Gerald died, it could be a good way to meet new people and keep active. It’d do you the world of good.”</p>
<p>B smiled fondly at him, a warm smile that he wasn’t well acquainted with. But from the look in her eyes, he could tell he’d be seeing more of that smile again in the future.</p>
<p>“Maybe you’re right. I’ve certainly got the funds for it.” She chuckled.</p>
<p>“Enough that you could make a massive difference for people. And what a time to do it as well. People would certainly appreciate the help now more than ever.”</p>
<p>B actually had to stop and think for a moment what he meant by that before she even remembered that the slump existed. She’d been spending so much time on her estate, she’d almost forgotten that there was an economic crisis going on in the rest of the world. Ok, maybe she was a little out of touch with the world. Maybe getting out into the working world really would help.</p>
<p>“Anyway,” Michael continued, “Whatever you do, I think you ought to talk to Jack and Jane first.” B straightened up at that, having briefly forgotten all about the incident that brought on this conversation in the first place.</p>
<p>“Yes. Right. Of course.”</p>
<p>“I’ll go get them.” At that, Michael headed out the door, leaving B on her own. She wasn’t quite sure what she was going to say to them. Half of her wanted to think of something to rehearse in her head, while the other half wanted to just make it up on the spot so she could be more genuine. But how on earth would she even do that? She knew what she had done to Jack was wrong. Even when she denied it. It’s just that Jack had reminded her so much of David, and she couldn’t bear the thought of Jane, on top of getting everything she had ever wanted, getting to be with her own David, too. But if Michael was right, she could go on to do all the things she’d ever wanted to do. The world was a lot more open than it was back then, and really, she didn’t need to follow those restrictions from her youth. She could be as free as everyone else instead of trying to undo the work they’d done. Her mother and grandmother had both made it past 100, so if she had another 20 years to fill, she was certainly going to need to keep busy. And she wasn’t going to be able to do that if she kept hurting her family and their friends. She cringed slightly thinking of their faces. Not just from tonight, but from all the other times she had brought Jane to tears, and Michael. And when they grew up and the twins and Georgie came along, she did the same again. She’d have to remember to speak to them at some point too. And if that was the case, she might as well visit Winifred as well. Lord only knows she hadn’t been too sporting about her suffragette work. But if she could tell them that she was proud, now, she might just have enough to time to repair their relationships before she ran out of time. Straightening her hat, she took a deep breath, letting it out slowly in an attempt to calm her racing heart. She couldn’t help but be a little nervous of their reactions. But nevertheless, if she was to really prove she was a strong woman, then she could do this.</p>
<p>So, when Michael returned, she was rather disappointed to see that he was alone.</p>
<p>“Are they not coming in yet?” She asked. Surely it was getting quite cold outside.</p>
<p>“No,” Michael said gravely, “They’ve gone.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Human</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I need to stop writing at 1am.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ok, Jane hadn’t actually planned to do what she did. It just sort of… happened. She had been with Jack to comfort him, but it quickly turned into a normal conversation: joking, laughing. And then it got a little flirty. She hadn’t planned to walk home with him, but it happened. It wasn’t like either of them wanted to go back inside again, anyway. And when they reached Jack’s flat, she certainly hadn’t expected she would be going in with him. But when Jane woke up next to him the following morning, she was certainly glad she did.</p>
<p>Jane was the first to wake up that morning, where she spent several minutes lying in bed, thinking about how on earth she managed to get where she was, before spending a bit longer watching Jack sleep. A few rays of moonlight had slipped past the curtains to illuminate Jack’s body in their glow. He looked completely at peace, as if the drama of the night before had never even happened. His chest rose and fell with each breath as he lay on his side, facing away from Jane, and knowing that Jack’s alarm would ring out at any minute for him to turn down the lamps, she made the most of the final minutes of peace they had together, sliding closer to him and wrapping her arms around him from behind, kissing his bare back tenderly.</p>
<p>But of course, the peace couldn’t last forever, and it wasn’t long before the jarringly loud alarm rang out through the silence. It quickly roused Jack, who reached out to switch it off, before lying still for a few more moments, willing himself to get up. And when it registered that Jane <em>was</em> there and last night hadn’t been a dream, he turned to her, and gave her a soft kiss. The kiss seemed to last a lifetime, but was still over too soon, and much to quickly for her liking, Jack was out of bed to get dressed for the day. Though she was hardly going to complain about being able to watch <em>that</em>.</p>
<p>But soon enough, he was saying goodbye and leaving Jane to go back to sleep for another few hours before she would eventually have to get up for work as well. Though, this time, with Jack gone, it took much longer for her to fall asleep again, to the point that she may as well have just gotten up with Jack.</p>
<p>Anyway, she got up at seven, getting changed and making some toast before heading back to her own flat to pick up her things for work. Then, she was off to the SPRUCE office, arriving just on time. That day in particular had very little going on for it. There was no big eventful rally, no research gathering, no volunteering, not even a meeting about something more interesting than the paperwork she was currently slogging through. Jane had always much preferred the more practical side of her work, but no job could be completed without at least a bit of paperwork every now and then. And with it being the start of the month, the time when the organisation liked to get it all done, this was the time when she had an ungodly amount to work through.</p>
<p>She was as quick as she could be with it, enough so that she was far enough ahead that she could relax over the lunch break to chat with Joanna and Leslie. Leslie had been telling her about a dog that broke into the homeless shelter he helped run, and gorged itself on the residents’ breakfasts, while Joanna kept going on about the rich old lady that apparently had phoned up looking asking about a position. But it wasn’t long before she was back at her work, powering through the rest until she had finished it all by half four. So, after finishing up some odd jobs to be ready for the new volunteering scheme next week, she packed up and headed out, still thinking about nothing but how she spent the night.</p>
<p>It was because of this, that she didn’t think twice about visiting Cherry Tree Lane. Of course, she did consider the fact that B had been there the night before, but she was too caught up in her mind to remember that she had seen her overnight bags by the door and so thought she would have already left by then. So, when she passed the window and spotted her aunt in the window, she was too in shock to even think to get away, and of course, that meant it was all the more easy for B to spot her.</p>
<p>“Janet Banks! Where on earth did you run off to last night?” Jane cringed as her voice bellowed loud enough that she must have startled the neighbours. The old lady was surprisingly quick to come down the steps and meet her, and this was enough for Jane to realise there was no use in trying to keep walking.</p>
<p>“It’s no big deal, I just went home.”</p>
<p>“You and Jack just vanished. We were worried about you. I would have had Michael call the police if we didn’t see you today.”</p>
<p>“Well, I’m fine,” she insisted, “I didn’t think you were still going to be here, though.”</p>
<p>“So, you wanted to avoid me?” She asked, an expression of genuine surprise across her features. “Well, I’m staying another two days, so you can’t be doing that. Now, what are you upset about? I expected Jack would have been keen to go, but not you.” Jane was already fuming at that. Of course, she was going to be mad that she upset Jack. They were a couple, for crying out loud! But obviously, B was never in the habit of not thinking about the consequences of her actions.</p>
<p>“Well, I wasn’t going to leave him on his own after that. And I certainly didn’t want to spend the evening with you while you were in such a mood over nothing.” Jane huffed, clearly to the annoyance of her aunt. But while she definitely was expecting her to start ranting, she instead paused, took a deep breath, and in a completely calm manner, said,</p>
<p>“I’m sorry.”</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done all that. I always say I respect the military, and then last night I didn’t.”</p>
<p>“Why, then?” Jane asked, crossing her arms with a raised brow. B sighed, clearly not wanting to go into detail about it, but knowing that she really had no choice.</p>
<p>“Jane, I don’t dislike him. And I have no issue with you either. It’s really more of an issue with myself. You have all the things I’ve ever wanted but could never have. And I suppose I haven’t handled it very well.” Jane was silent. For several long moments, she just stared in utter disbelief, unable to comprehend what she’d just heard. But very quickly, that disbelief morphed into pure fury.</p>
<p>“You were jealous?! You’ve done everything possible to bring me down and make mine and everyone else’s life around me a misery, just because you were jealous?!!”</p>
<p>“Look, Jane, I-”</p>
<p>“No! You can’t seriously think I’m just going to accept that. Do you realise how much you’ve done to everyone over the years? How is it that you were jealous of me, but made every single person on the planet suffer for it? If your problem id with me, why do you make the children cry? Why do you insult Ellen to the point she hides from you? Why do you make Jack to scared that he literally can’t even stand to be in the same building as you? What the hell is wrong with you?!” B stepped back, unsure what to say. Truth be told, aside from Jane and Winifred, she had never really considered why she was the way she was.</p>
<p>“Jane, things are a little different now from how it was in my day. It’s just hard to get out of old habits.”</p>
<p>“Rubbish! There’s plenty of people older than you who are perfectly decent. There has to be more to it than that.” And as old habits die hard, B finally snapped.</p>
<p>“Do you want me to go crying to you about my dad?!” They both froze. B could’ve just been speaking hypothetically, yet there was something in the tone of her voice that suggested that this was something real. B seemed to realise too, her eyes darting to the floor, though still holding a strong scowl. After a moment of silence between them, it was B who finally muttered,</p>
<p>“If you raise a child by insulting them, she’ll do the same.”</p>
<p>Jane sighed, growing tired of the conversation. It was clear that this wasn’t going to be a problem that could be talked out in one conversation. And if B was going to be staying for another two days, there was going to plenty of time for that later.</p>
<p>“Look,” Jane began, “I don’t like you. And one conversation isn’t going to fix that. But if you’re really sorry, then you can prove it and start acting like a decent person. And if you can manage that, I might actually be able to forgive you one of these days.” B looked relieved, and for a moment, Jane could’ve sworn she saw the hint of a smile. And not of her smug grins when she was satisfied that she’d ruined someone’s day, but a real genuine smile that was enough to make Jane feel hopeful that she might just be serious about all this.</p>
<p>“That’s what I’m trying to do. This morning I called up SPRUCE to see what sort of roles there are and ways I can help people. And I’ve already discussed with Michael about taking the children to the park. Michael and I went this morning while the children were at school, and more time with Ellen in one day than I have in all the years I’ve known her.” She said with a chuckle, “So now, it yours and Jack’s turn.” Jane cringed.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I don’t think ill be able to convince Jack to see you again for a while.”</p>
<p>“Oh, yes, of course.” B looked to the floor in shame for a moment. “Then how about we do something together, and Jack can join us for something in the future.” Part of her still wanted to decline. After so long of the woman harassing her, she didn’t even feel like giving her the chance to change, but at the same time, she was the one who said she needed to make up for it, and if she really wanted to, then she really shouldn’t stop her. She mused to herself for several moments longer, gathering up the will to even reply, and telling herself over and over that if they went out somewhere together, they could talk about other things. It wouldn’t be this awkward. But then again, believing that was a challenge in and of itself.</p>
<p>It was only when B started to look uncomfortable that Jane realised how long she was taking to answer, and without even thinking, she said,</p>
<p>“You know what? Sure. Why not. We could go on a walk to that new café on Watson Street.” B smiled in relief.</p>
<p>“Sounds like a plan. I’ll go get my coat.” Just as quickly as she had come out, she turned on her heel to head back inside, and Jane couldn’t help but smile as she saw her go. Alright, maybe she rather did like the idea that she would change. Yes, she wasn’t going to get over it immediately, and she was certainly still bitter about the night before. And god only knows what Jack would think. But for now, it didn’t matter. She seemed to be sorry enough for Jane to be comfortable giving her the chance to change her ways, and maybe it would work out. Maybe it wouldn’t. But at least whatever happened, she could say that she had the chance. And as she waited for her return, Jane couldn’t quite help but wonder how different it would to talk to her aunt like a normal human being.</p>
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